Urban Assembly student wins NYC Finals: to compete in 35th Annual National Shakespeare Competition

NEW YORK - March 16, 2018 - PRLog -- Christina Liberus, student of  Gabriel Eden from Urban Assembly School for the Performing Arts won first place at the English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition New York City Branch tournament on March 9. Christina will compete with more than 50 other contestants from around the country at the ESU National Shakespeare Competition at Lincoln Center Theater in New York on April 23, 2018.

Juan Jimenez Pena from Professional Performing Arts School earned second place, and Abigail Arader from Dwight School was awarded third place at the New York City Branch competition held at The Morgan Library & Museum. Each student performed a Shakespearean monologue of their choice and recited a sonnet. Competitors were judged on their understanding of their selected texts and on their ability to communicate their interpretation to the audience. Judges for the Branch Competition included Andrea Haring, Executive Director, Linklater Center for Voice and Language; Abbi Hawk, Actor; Dr. Cristina Leon Alfar, Associate Professor, Hunter College; Geoffrey Owens, Actor; and Robert Young, Director of Education, retired, Folger Shakespeare Library.

Prizes for the competition included $500 for first place, $250 for second place and $100 for third place, and the first and second place students' teachers received tickets to the upcoming performance or King Lear, generously donated by the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

"Our twelve finalists were selected from more than 75 school competitions throughout the city and have provided a wonderful afternoon filled with Shakespeare. We also extend a thank you to the teachers who go well outside the hours of their school day to support their students and Shakespeare. You are the foundation of the ESU National Shakespeare Competition." Christopher Broadwell, Executive Director, The English-Speaking Union.

The English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition isa performance-based education program in which high school students nationwide read, analyze, perform, and recite Shakespeare's works. Through the program, students develop communication skills and an appreciation of the power of language and literature. In the Competition's three progressive levels, students perform in their own schools, at ESU Branch community competitions, and at the National Shakespeare Competition at Lincoln Center Theater in New York City. Since 1983, more than 300,000 young Americans of all backgrounds have taken advantage of this opportunity to bring the timeless works of Shakespeare to life and learn to express his words with understanding, feeling, and clarity.

Christina, as the winner of the ESU New York City Branch competition will represent the NYC Branch in the ESU National Shakespeare Competition at the world-renowned Lincoln Center Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater on April 23, competing with more than 50 other winners from Branch competitions nationwide. On stage, each will perform a monologue and sonnets before a panel of distinguished judges as well as their fellow contestants. Based on their performances, seven to ten students will advance to a final round. Those finalists, performing their selections along with a cold reading of a monologue, compete for the first place award, which is an all-expenses-paid scholarship to attend the Young Actors' Summer School for two weeks at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. For additional information regarding the English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition, please visit http://www.esuus.org/esu/programs/shakespeare_competition.

Founded in 1920, The English-Speaking Union is a non-profit, non-political educational organization that employs English as a catalyst to foster global understanding and good will through educational and cultural exchange programs. The ESU carries out its work through a network of 58 Branches nationwide along with affiliates in the United Kingdom and 60 other countries. For additional information about the English-Speaking Union, please visit www.esuus.org.